The Email
by e-dog
Summary: I think the title says it all...
1. The Email Part 1

Disclaimer: I had a dream once...and I directed an episode...it was great. But in reality...nope. Can't say that I own them...because I don't. *sigh*

Spoilers: Somewhere in Season 9...I guess...No Mattie and no Clay. 

Rating: PG for a little language...

Category: Humor

Author's Note: I'm not sure what's going on. Sometimes I find myself working in the middle of "Wrong Place, Worst Time", and then an idea pops into my head...and I find myself typing paragraphs of stuff completely unrelated to the story I was writing in the first place. *shrugs* I do what my muse tells me to do. 

I tried to think of a better title, cuz honestly, I think it gives the story away...but oh well. Also, this story is meant to be silly, so the characterizations may seem off. Hope you like it! 

"The E-mail"

by e-dog

2430 Zulu

JAG Headquarters

Falls Church, Virginia

It was late. The office was practically dead and Harm was still at his desk. Staring at his computer screen. He folded his hands and leaned forward on the desk to read it one last time...

~Mac, 

Okay...so I was a complete ass today. That remark in court was way below the belt...and I'm sorry. And, yes, I just apologized. I really am sorry.

Things between us lately have been crazy...and I'm not quite sure where to go from here, but I want to take a step to help make things better. So, I'm going to go out on a limb here and say what I've been meaning to say ever since I realized it. 

I'm in~ __

Harm stopped and leaned back. The e-mail ended there. He slowly typed the word "love". Then he paced the office for a few minutes, sat back down and typed the rest of the sentence. 

"I'm in love with you," he repeated quietly. Then he quickly typed some more. When finished, he leaned back in his chair to read the rest of it...

~I'm in love with you. I know this may seem sudden and I may sound crazy to you, but I really mean it. I don't want to go into details in an e-mail, so I'm hoping we can talk. I mean really talk and work things out. Please write back or come see me. I'll be waiting.

Love, Harm~

He shook his head and chuckled to himself. He highlighted the whole email. His finger hovered above the delete key, but this time his finger didn't want to push it. He gulped, remembering how many times before he had written e-mails similar to this one. How he always ended up deleting them and never sending them. 

He sat there, his hand still in the air just above the key. His heart beat faster as he began to contemplate actually sending it this time... 

"Officer on deck!!" someone yelled loudly. 

Harm jumped up and stumbled backwards, tripping over his chair and crashing to the ground with a thud. Sturgis was laughing so hard, he leaned on the door for support. Harm got up glaring and growled, "Sturgis...that was _not_ funny." 

"Sorry, Harm..., couldn't resist!" Sturgis laughed. "You were just sitting there, spaced out...you jumped up so high... It was like you were ejecting out of an F-14!" 

"Ha Ha," Harm chuckled sarcastically, surprised by how amused Sturgis was by the whole thing. He was usually a no-nonsense type of guy. He rubbed his back and sat back down in his chair. 

"Why are you here so late, anyway?" Sturgis asked, sitting a file for Harm on the desk. 

"Nothing," Harm said quickly, but that wasn't good enough for Sturgis. 

"You're hiding something," Sturgis said, observing Harm's fidgety behavior. 

"No, I'm not," Harm smiled, trying to act cool. His finger hovering above the delete button again. If Sturgis came too close, the e-mail was going to be deleted permanently...

"Ok, don't tell me," Sturgis sighed. "It's not like we haven't known each other for _years_..." 

"Don't pull that guilt stuff on me, Sturgis, " Harm called after him as he walked out. "That doesn't work on me!" 

When Sturgis was completely out of sight, Harm returned his attention to the e-mail. He took a deep breath, read it again and finally decided not to send it. He clicked DELETE and he let out the air he was holding. He would try again some other day. He frowned when his computer made a strange bleeping sound. He stared at the screen and sighed heavily, "Oh, for crying out loud!"

There was an error message and it said, "Could not complete request." 

"Stupid computer," he muttered. For some reason, his computer wasn't deleting the e-mail message. He clicked a few more times, pressed a few keys and realized now the computer was frozen. 

"Great," he fumed and smacked the machine angrily. It made a weird sound and then reported the request was completed. He smiled until he saw the next message that popped up on the screen. 

"Email has been sent." 

"Oh no!" he hissed under his breath as he watched the little icon in the corner animate; telling him his e-mail was on it's way. "Oh, man...come back..."

He stood up and paced and then looked at the screen again...He never meant to actually send it! Well, there was one way to solve this. Get in Mac's computer and delete it before she saw it. That was simple enough, right?

Than another animation in the corner of his screen caught his eye. He now had a new message in his inbox. He frowned in confusion and opened it. His eyes scanned the words and his jaw dropped. It was the same e-mail he had just written to Mac! 

"Oh, God...," he started to hyperventilate and than told himself, "It's okay, Harm...you just sent it to yourself...don't panic..." 

He checked who it was actually sent to and nearly vomited. 

"Time to panic..." he said to himself in a grave manner. That e-mail, containing the confession of his true feelings for Mac, he had inadvertently sent to the entire bullpen by mistake!

"Oh, shit...," he muttered. 

To be continued...

Next part tomorrow...I hope...


	2. The Email Part 2

Disclaimer: Nope. Not mine.

Rating: PG for a little language...

Author's Note: heh...I was going to make this *_really*_ silly and crazy, but decided against it. Sooo...I think this will end up being more shipper friendly in the end. Thanks to all who gave feedback!

Humor/Romance

2455 Zulu

JAG Headquarters

Falls Church, Virginia

"The E-mail" 

Part Two

by e-dog

"Oh, shit," Harm repeated, pacing. "What am I going to do?" 

It was one thing to hack into one person's computer and erase one e-mail. It was another thing to try to get into everyone's computer and erase e-mails! He checked his watch...it was nearly 8 in the evening. "Okay, everyone is gone...so no one will see it until tomorrow..." 

Harm plopped down in his chair...feeling defeated and lost. How was he going to fix this before people started filing in at 8 o'clock the next morning? Hell, Mac would probably show up at 7:30, seeing how she liked to be early sometimes. He checked his watch again. It was exactly 8 o'clock now. 

He had less than 12 hours to figure out...something. 

"Think, Harm," he talked to himself. "Think!" 

Not even five seconds had passed before he gave up on trying to think. He laughed at himself, "Oh my God. I just sent the entire office an "I love you" confession!" 

He rubbed his eyes in thought and in frustration. He was royally screwed and he knew it. He knew nothing about computers and had no idea where to start. When AJ came in the next morning to find that e-mail in his inbox... he would kiss his job goodbye! Goodbye JAG! He leaned back in his chair and moaned...

_A half an hour later..._

Sturgis was finally heading out for the night. It had been a very long day. He was about to say goodnight to Harm, when he noticed that Harm was pacing back and forth rather fervently. He also saw Harm's very pale expression. He started in the direction of Harm's office and said, "Good night, Harm!"

"Huh?" Harm looked up, surprised to still see Sturgis here. What if he had read the e-mail already? He then uneasily smiled, "Oh...uh...good night, Sturgis..."

"You okay, Harm?" Sturgis asked, noticing a wild look in his eyes. "I mean, I'm sorry if my joke..." 

"No. No." Harm shook his head in the negative quickly, his voice a slightly higher pitch then normal. "Everything's fine." 

Instead of leaving, like Harm had hoped, Sturgis walked into the office. "You don't look so good, Harm. Are you going to be sick? Do you need help?"

Harm had no response for Sturgis. What was he going to say? Hey Sturgis! Go check your email and see what I sent you! 

Hell no! He wasn't going to say that! Harm ran a hand through his hair and insisted, "I'm fine, Sturgis. Go home." 

"I think you should go home too," Sturgis said, with just as much urgency as Harm had spoken. "It's...well, it's 8:30 at night."

"I know what time it is, Sturgis," Harm chuckled. He had been checking the time for the last half an hour constantly. Harm took a deep breath and said, "I have to figure out...something. I'll be going home soon." 

"Okay," Sturgis said and walked off. "Good night, Harm." 

"Night, Sturgis," Harm sat down and watched Sturgis walk away. From what he could tell, Sturgis hadn't seen the e-mail yet and that made him feel better. He still had time to try to figure out how to get rid of it. 

***

Sturgis stepped onto the elevator and let the doors close. A smile spread across his face and he repeated in a sing-song voice, "That remark in court was way below the belt...and I'm sorry. " 

He chuckled to himself again as he remembered another piece of what Harm wrote, "I don't want to go into details in an e-mail, but I want to talk..." 

Sturgis could barely contain himself by the time he got to his car. He leaned on it and waited until his laughter subsided. He didn't mean to be so cruel, but man! How did Harm send that to the entire office??

He opened the car door and looked back at the building where he knew Harm was squirming. Sturgis could only imagine what the Admiral would do to Harm when he read the e-mail. He sighed, secretly wishing he could help Harm but didn't know of a way of how he could. 

"Oh, buddy. You are soooo screwed." 

Sturgis was so lost in his thoughts, he never noticed a red Corvette pull up and park. And he never saw a certain Marine get out of that Corvette and head into JAG Headquarters...

To be continued...

Stay tuned for the conclusion...


	3. The Email Part 3

Disclaimer: Nope. Not mine.

Rating: PG for a little language...

Author's Note: Okay, so this chapter is much longer than the first two. Also, I think I said no Mattie in this, but I had to add her briefly to make this work. Then I decided, what the hey, I'll throw Tiner in there too. So I did. *grins* So, let's pretend he still works there for the purposes of this story... 

Anywho, thanks to all who gave feedback! 

Humor/Romance

"The E-mail" 

Part Three

by e-dog

2536 Zulu

JAG Headquarters

Falls Church, Virginia

His screen saver flashed on and he watched the colors bounce around. He had just been sitting there... staring at the screen after Sturgis left. He was stuck between a rock and a hard place and hated it. Deep down he wanted Mac to see that e-mail, but on the other hand, he didn't want the entire office to see it! There had to be some way he could fix this!

Harm's phone rang, startling him and he picked it up, "Hello?"

He listened to the other end and sighed, "You have got to be kidding me...Mattie, I'm so sorry..." 

Harm got up, with the phone attached to his ear listening to Mattie on the other end explain the situation. "I'm kinda in a tight spot, can't Jenn help?...oh, I forgot about that too...Uh... yeah, I'll be there soon...bye." 

He tried his best not to slam the phone down, but he did. Mattie had called needing a ride from school. Apparently, he forgot there was a some basketball game she attended and he forgot he had to pick her up tonight. On top of that, he also forgot that Jenn was out and couldn't pick up Mattie from school. So he had to leave.

"Damn it," he said, looking at his computer screen helplessly. He sucked it up, knowing the damage was done. He decided it would be better to try and get some sleep tonight and prepare for the next day. He grabbed his briefcase and cover and headed for the elevators. The doors opened and Mac walked out as he walked in. 

"Hey, Harm." she said like it was normal to see each other this late at the office.

"Hey, Mac," he said nonchalantly as well, then just as the doors shut he realized who it was. His eyes grew wide and he called out desperately, "Mac!"

"Harm?" she said confused and turned around. The doors were closed now, however, and she shrugged it off. Harm was just probably working late. She quickly entered her office and spied the folder she was looking for. 

"There you are," she smiled and picked it up. Before walking out, she snapped her fingers...remembering she still needed to print out an e-mail she received from Bud earlier that day...

***

Harm banged on the elevator doors and cursed loudly, "Ah hell! Open up!" 

Why was Mac here so late? Why did she have to show up now? When he finally reached the first floor, the doors opened and Tiner was standing there. Harm looked at him confused and asked, "Tiner?" 

"I need to pick up a book, sir," Tiner explained and was getting ready to step on, but Harm pushed him back off and ordered, "Take the stairs, Petty Officer!" 

"But sir!" Tiner exclaimed as the doors closed in his face. "I have to get up there..." 

Tiner sighed and decided to wait on the next trip up...

***

Harm bursted through the elevator doors and ran into Mac's office. He paused, trying to catch his breath and then asked, "Mac? Did you open your e-mail?"

She jumped up, surprised to see him and stammered, "What?" 

"Did you open your e-mail?" he asked again.

"Uh...No. Why?" she asked. 

"Oh good...," he smiled, then straightened up. "What I mean is...there was an e-mail virus going around... and I didn't want you to get it." 

"You already opened it or something?" Mac laughed. 

"Yeah," Harm said, then added softly. "I think I infected the whole office..." 

"You always were the computer genius," she laughed sarcastically. "Thanks for the warning. I won't open my e-mail." 

"Good, don't open your e-mail," he smiled. "I have to run..." 

"Bye," she said and watched him walk away. When he was gone, she looked at the screen...the e-mail in front of her. She sighed in disbelief and said, "Oh, Harm...wow..." 

She had seen it was addressed to everyone and that the e-mail had no subject. So she opened it...and was she surprised! She leaned forward to read it again...and again...and again. She sat back and covered her mouth in attempts to suppress her amusement, but it wasn't working. Poor Harm. 

When Harm had bursted into her office just now, she could see how worried he was about the whole thing, so she decided to lie about seeing it. To help put his mind at ease for one night, at least. 

She read it again for the last time and smiled, truly touched by what he had to say. Unfortunately, he said it to everyone! 

"Wow..." she heard someone say out in the bullpen. She got up and saw Tiner at his desk, holding his law book under his arm and starring blankly at his screen. He was reading it aloud, "I'm in love with you. I know this may seem sudden and I may sound crazy to you, but I really mean it." 

Tiner let a smile cross his face, then he looked up and saw Mac. He quickly stood to attention, "Ma'am!" 

"At ease," she said. Tiner immediately began to explain why he was here. 

"I was just grabbing my book and saw the computer was still up, so I, uh... as I was going to close the program, I spotted the email and couldn't resist in opening it...," he said. 

"You read it?" she asked, knowing he had.

"Uh...yes, Ma'am," he smiled sheepishly. "The Comdr. sure has a way with words..." 

"Yeah, but he sure doesn't know his way around a keyboard," she laughed and Tiner agreed. 

Mac turned around and then Tiner called her back. "Yes, Tiner?" 

"Aren't you going to respond, Ma'am?" he asked. "I mean, he did ask for you to write back..."

Mac didn't answer, but that did give her an idea. Tiner saw the thoughtful expression cross her face and wondered what she was planning to do...

The next morning

1522 Zulu

JAG Headquarters

Falls Church, Virginia

Harm rode the elevator up dog tired. That had to be the worst night of his life. Period. 

He didn't get any sleep. All he could think about was that...e-mail. The elevator ride ended sooner then he wanted it to and the doors slowly opened. Before stepping off, he peeked out to see if anyone was there and the hallway was all clear. He stepped out and quietly made his way to the bullpen. Of course he prayed that no one would be there, but he knew deep down that he wouldn't be so lucky. He could hear an unusually quiet roar over the bullpen which almost immediately ceased when he came into view of his co-workers. 

He stood there frozen for a moment, trying his best not to look his co-workers in the eyes. Harriet tried to hold back a smile, but he could see it was too much for her to bear. She quickly turned away and even though he couldn't see her...he could feel the smile breaking across her face. His eyes scanned the room and he saw Sturgis, just flipping through a folder, trying to look busy. Bud was at the water fountain, but wasn't drinking any water. 

Harm finally found the ability to move his legs and he quickly strode into his office and shut the door. The dull roar could be heard again through his door and he sighed. That was by far the most embarrassing entrance into JAG he had ever experienced. 

"Well," he breathed, after his heart had finally stopped beating so fast. "That wasn't too bad..."

"Comdr.! Get in my office now!" he heard AJ bark outside his office door. 

"And so it begins," Harm muttered as he stepped back out into the bullpen and quickly walked past all the happy and amused stares. He tried to smile and pretend he found it amusing too, but he just couldn't. He was too embarrassed. 

He walked into AJ's office and surprisingly saw Mac there too. He came up next to her and said, "Reporting as ordered..." 

"Yeah, yeah, at ease," AJ said dismissing the formal introduction. Harm took the more relaxed stance and AJ sighed. 

"I have to say, I'm disappointed in both of you," AJ began. 

"Wait, both of us, sir?" Harm interrupted. 

"That's what I said, Comdr," AJ said annoyed. "Now, I want you two to know, that was a highly unprofessional way to use e-mail in the workplace."

"We know, sir," Mac said and Harm looked at her, but she motioned for him to just stay quiet. 

"Now, I know this could happen to anyone," AJ smiled, which made Harm relax even more. "To be honest, I've done it myself...computers aren't exactly user-friendly..."

"You've done it yourself, sir?" Harm interjected. 

"Sent an e-mail to the SecNav that was intended for someone else," AJ recalled. "Let's just say I said some things about my CO that he shouldn't have read..." 

Both Harm and Mac released small chuckles at this, but then AJ got serious again, "But the fact remains you shouldn't send personal e-mails to each other. Not here at JAG. I've had to learn that the hard way and I hope you two learned a lesson too." 

"Understood, sir," They both responded at the same time. Harm glanced at Mac, still confused as to why she was getting reprimanded too...

***

AJ's punishment wasn't as bad as it could have been. Fortunately, he sympathized with the situation, seeing how he was a victim of it once himself. So after AJ ordered his punishment, which was some grunt work and a few extra hours unpaid, Mac walked out and was quickly followed by Harm. 

"Mac, wait," he said, this time completely unfazed by the stares they were both receiving. "What was that all about?" 

"You didn't get the e-mail?" she asked, and then walked away. 

"E-mail?" he repeated confused. He hurried into his office, sat down and opened his e-mail. There was a new message and it too was sent to the entire JAG office. Only this time, it was from Mac. He clicked it open and smiled as he read:

~Harm,

Someone suggested I should respond to you, so I am. You were right...you were being an ass, but I accept your apology. I'm sure after you receive this e-mail, we'll talk _real_ soon. 

Love, Mac

P.S. I love you too.~

Harm read the last line three times before looking up and seeing Mac in the doorway. He stood up and asked, "Why?" 

"I couldn't let you suffer all that embarrassment by yourself," she said, giving him a small smile and stepped further into his office. 

"Wow, Mac," he walked up to her. "You sent that e-mail out to everyone, so I wouldn't be alone?" 

She nodded and he broke into a grin, "That was...that was really thoughtful of you." 

"I thought so too," she laughed and began to head out. "I'll talk to you later, Harm..." 

"Wait, Mac," he called her back quietly. She turned around and came back in. He stared into her eyes and looked at her with an intensity she had never seen from him before. She was frozen in place and speechless. He finally spoke and said, "I thought we were going to talk." 

"Now?" she managed to get out, still having trouble breaking from his stare. 

He just nodded yes. Completely forgetting where he was, he slowly leaned down to kiss her. Mac, apparently losing all common sense too, slowly gravitated upwards to meet him, but they both stopped when they heard a fake cough from the bullpen. 

Harm and Mac both slowly turned to look out into the bullpen. They saw the smiling faces of Harriet, Bud, Sturgis, Tiner and practically everyone who was out there just looking into Harm's office...waiting for the momentous occasion. 

Waiting for the kiss. 

Mac turned away from their smiling faces, slightly embarrassed. She couldn't believe she was about to kiss Harm in front of everyone at work! Had she lost her mind?

"Mac," Harm looked at her and lifted her chin up to see her face. 

"Harm, everyone is watching," she whispered. 

"So?" he grinned. "We sent out e-mails saying that we loved each other to everyone!" 

"Good point," she laughed. 

And with that, Harm suddenly leaned down and gently brushed his lips against hers. There were a few whistles from the onlookers as Mac slowly fell deeper into the kiss. What was meant to be a taste, soon became much more. She now had her arms wrapped around his neck. His fingers were entangled in her hair. Harm attempted to shut his office door with his foot, but kept missing. 

The bullpen was soon jumping with excitement. Harriet was even predicting when the wedding shower would be. Tiner laughed along with his co-workers, who were happy that Harm and Mac were finally getting it right. Then he suddenly stopped clapping. The bullpen hadn't noticed yet, but Tiner always knew when his CO was coming. He looked up and said in a hushed whisper, "Sir! Ma'am! He's coming!"

Harm and Mac didn't even hear Tiner's attempts to break them up. The bullpen was just too loud. Everyone however shut-up when AJ bellowed, "Comdr? Col? What the hell do you think you're doing?!?" 

Harm and Mac pulled apart quickly; wide eyed, breathless and shocked at to how far that kiss went. 

They slowly turned to their CO and gave him a blank expression...

The End?

A/N: Hm. Now that is what I call an evil ending. I can't decide if I should continue or not. Not guaranteeing that I will, but I'll think about it. Thanks for reading!!


End file.
